A confirmation and discovery of witchcraft

John Stearne (c. 1610–1670) was an associate of self-styled "Witchfinder General"

Matthew Hopkins Matthew Hopkins ( 1620 – 12 August 1647) was an English witch-hunter whose career flourished during the English Civil War. He claimed to hold the office of Witchfinder General, although that title was never bestowed by Parliament, a ...

, who was active during the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I (" Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of r ...

. The duo's activities were portrayed unreliably in the 1968 cult classic ''Witchfinder-General'' (U.S. title: ''The Conqueror Worm''). Stearne was known at various times as the witch-hunter, and "witch pricker". Raised in

Long Melford Long Melford, colloquially and historically also referred to as Melford, is a large village and civil parish in the Babergh district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It is on Suffolk's border with Essex, which is marked by the River Stour, ...

, Suffolk, Stearne later became a land owner at

Lawshall Lawshall is a village and civil parish in Suffolk, England. Located around a mile off the A134 between Bury St Edmunds and Sudbury, it is part of Babergh district. The parish has nine settlements comprising the three main settlements of The St ...

near Bury St Edmunds. He met Hopkins, who was 10 years' his junior, in

Manningtree Manningtree is a town and civil parish in the Tendring district of Essex, England, which lies on the River Stour. It is part of the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Natural Beauty. Smallest town claim Manningtree has traditionally claimed to b ...

and appointed him as his assistant. As a result of Stearne's accusations, a trial was held in

Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Southend-on-Sea and Colchester. It ...

in July 1645 for 29 people accused of witchcraft and sorcery. Gaskill 2005: p. 123 Of these, four had died in prison prior to the trial and 15 or 16 were subsequently hanged. Nine who had been convicted of

conjuring Conjuration or Conjuring may refer to: __NOTOC__ Concepts * Conjuration (summoning), the evocation of spirits or other supernatural entities ** Conjuration, a school of magic in ''Dungeons & Dragons'' * Conjuration (illusion), the performance of s ...

spirits were reprieved. Gaskill 2005: p. 129 Within a year of the death of Matthew Hopkins, John Stearne retired to his farm and wrote ''A Confirmation and Discovery of Witchcraft''.

References

Notes Bibliography * *

External links

*http://www.witchtrials.co.uk/stearne.html *http://www.witchtrials.co.uk/matthew.html *
A Confirmation and Discovery of Witchcraft
' {{DEFAULTSORT:Stearne, John 1670 deaths 17th-century English writers 17th-century English male writers English farmers People from Babergh District Witch hunters Year of birth uncertain Witchcraft in England Witch trials in England